Roof-door



l P. HOGSTROM.

ROOF DOOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, 1920.

Patented May 31, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

ATTORNEYS P. HOGSTROM.

ROOF DOOR.

APPLLCATION HLED MAY5.1920.

Patented May 31, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

PEEP/70651201? WITNESSES ATTORNEYS PETER HOGSTROM, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y.

ROOF-DOOR.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented May 31, 1921.

Application filed May 5, 1920. Serial No. 379,101.

To all fw hom t may concern:

Be it known that I PETER IIoGs'rRoM, a citizen of the United tates, and a resident of the city of New York7 Long Island City, borough of Queens, in the county of Queens and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Roof-Door, of which the following is a description. v

The importance of opening a roof door when a building is in flames is well recognized. @ne of the first duties of the truck companies of the fire department is to see that the roof door is open to thereby prevent the curling or mushroooming of the names downwardly with destructive results to the parts'of the building below the iioor on which the tire occurs.

It is an object of my invention to provide a roof door that will automatically and unfailingly open under a predetermined heat.

A further object of the invention is to,

utilize the weight of the door and cause it to gravitationally swing to the open position and to normally restrain the door in the closed position subject to a fusible element.

rlllhe invention also has for an important object to provide for the optionally manual raising and lowering of the roof door without affecting the automatic control of the same.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide an embodiment of the invention reflectingv practical considerations with rcspect to strength and durability with simplicity of construction as well as to promote convenience of installation.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, it being understood that the drawings are merely illustrative of practical examples of the invention.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a roof door embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a partly sectional side elevation thereof; f

Fig. 3 .is a transverse vertical section;

Fig. 4 is a plan view;

Fig. 5 is an inverted plan view;

Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical section showing the invention in another form.

In carrying out my invention in accordance with the example illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5, the curb 10 on the roof 11 at the scuttle or skylight, may be of any approved construction, My improved door includes a frame 12 which is hinged at one end as at 13 to the curb 10 or equivalent structure so as to be optionally swung outwardly for the opening of the door in the ordinary use thereof. Within the frame 12 I provide an inwardly swingable door 14 which as will be readily understood, may be glazed or otherwise. Said door 14 is hinged at one end as at 15 to the frame 12 to swing vertically as a drop door, relatively to said' frame. The frame 12 is covered with a suitable sheathing 16 which may, as shown, extend over the hinged end of said frame as at 16a toexclude the rain and the drop door 14 has a sheathing 17 which extends beyond the hinge 15 of said drop door and beyond the frame 12 as indicated at 20, said end 20 and the end 16ZL being curved downwardly. At the sides of the door 14, the frame 12 and sald door have coacting elements to exclude water7 the sheathing 16 being formed into inverted channels 18 and adapted to receive vertical flanges 19 on the sheathing 17 when the door 14 is in the raised position.

The door 14 will -have a tendency to gravitationally move to the open position swinging on the hinge or hinges 15 and relatively to the frame 12 which remains in position as said drop door opens. In order to restrain the door 14 in the raised position, holder means at the under side thereof, subject to a predetermined heat, isA provided and as here shown includes short chain lengths 217 22 terminating at their adjacent ends in separable elements 23 overlapping each other and united by a fusible solder. The opposite end of one chain 21 is secured to the door, 14, there being shown a fitting 24to which said chain end is secured, said fitting being suitably fastened in fixed position to a cleat 25 on the under side of said door or other fixed part thereof. The end ofthe chain length 22 opposite the element 23 thereon is secured to a movable element 26 here shown as a frame hinged as at 27 to a cleat 28 on the under side of frame 12 adjacent to the free end rof the door 14. Additional cleats 29, 30 are preferably provided for strength at the under side of the door 14, one of the cleats being at the lfree edge ofthe door and provided with a wear element 31 with which the swingable element 26 may contact. Thus, in the drawing of the chain lengths 21, 22, together, to be joined by the soldering of the element '23 the hinged element 2G will bear against the cleat 30 at theV wear projections 31 and exert a tightening leverage against the door 14.

lith the above-described construction, it will be obvious that the complete door including the frame 12 may be swung outwardly whenever desired and without disturbing the automatic control of the inthere being a trame 12L hinged as at 13V Y to swing outwardly with the inwardly swinging door letEL and the latter being hinged at its lower edge as at 15a, to said frame 12'-I lVth the vertical door, the illustrated arrangement may be adopted, the trame 121 being hinged at the top as at 13a to a depending member 10b on the fixed roof structure 10a atk the scuttle or skylight, the door 111 being hinged at its lower edge as at 15a to said frame. A latch bolt 32 having a projection 32C forming a finger-hold may be provided on member 10b, as well as a keeper 32L on frame 12a to receive the latch bolt, the withdrawal of the bolt from said keeper serving to release said frame 12a and permit it to be swung outwardly with the door 14A-a. The door 14;a may have any suitable latch to normally hold it against swinging inward, there being shown in the illustrated example a ball 82b under pressure of a spring 3J housed in a pocket 32d in the upper edge of door 14a, the ball being adapted to spring into a depression 32e in the opposed edge of frame 12a.

The automatic controlling means in the form shown in Fig. 6 is modiiied to the eX- tent that a chain length 21a is secured at one end to a depending chain length 22a suspended from the united elements 23 which may be the same as previously described, said elements being suspended 'from the top of the fixed structure 10a at the scut tle or skylight opening, there being illustrated for the purpose a short chain 22b secured to the adjacent element 23 and to the structure 10L by an eye 22". The depending chain 22'd1 has a weight 33 hung thereon and therefore indirectly suspended from the lower one of the soldered elements 23. That end of the chain 21a opposite the weighted suspended chain 22a is connected with the door 14a' as by an eye 261.

Vcause the connection of the chain 21a with door 1e@ is close to hinge 152L and therefore the point of connection moves through but an arc of small radius in the outward opening of the door. Should fire occur and heat develop sutliciently for tusing'the elements 23, the weight 33 will drop and through the connection 211 wing the door 141;'al inwardly, the weight serving to overcome the frietional engagement of the ball catch 32L with the iframe 12fL at the recess 32e. Y

-lilith the described arrangement of the door let its own weiglit.causes the inward movement when said door is released. `With the described arrangement of the door 14, its own weight plus that of weight 33 and chain 21a, considered together as a unitary potential weight, the said door opens automatically under said combined unitary weight distributed as described.

1 would state in conclusion that while the illustrated examples constitute practical embodiments of my invention, I do not limitmyself strictly to the mechanical details herein illustrated, since manifestly the Vsame can be considerably varied without departure from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim: y l

1. A roof door structure including a trame, means to hingedly secure the iframe to swing outwardly, andV a door hinged in said trame to swing outwardly therewith and to swing inwardly independently of said trame.

2. A root j door structure including a trame, means to Y hingedly secure the frame to swing outwardly, and a door hinged in said frame to swing outwardly, and a door hinged in said frame to swing outwardly therewith and t-o swing inwardly independently of said frame; together with holding means normally restraining said inwardly swinging door against movement relatively to said trame, said means being subject to a predetermined heat for releasing the inwardly swinging door.

3. A root' door structure including a trame, means to hinge said frame to swing outwardly, a door hinged in said iframe to swing inwardly independent of the frame and adapted to swing outwardly with said trame, and means subject to a predetermined Ernia HoesrRoM. 

